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After

In the Night Room

Peter Straub2004

6 of 6 directions open

More like it

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  • Hyde

    Daniel Levine2014

    This retelling of the Jekyll and Hyde story is narrated by the Hyde persona from within their shared body. It focuses on his internal entrapment.

    cold → bleak, still psychological horror

    pace0·prose0·bleak0

Denser prose

cold → dreamlike, still psychological horror

3 more ↓

  • The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner

    James Hogg1824

    A religious fanatic becomes convinced he is predestined for salvation and commits crimes at the behest of a mysterious stranger.

    Same cold register, still psychological horror

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+1

  • Ghost Stories

    Henry James2001

    A collection of Victorian tales where the existence of ghosts is often left to the reader's interpretation.

    cold → meditative, still psychological horror

    pace0·prose+1·bleak0

  • Blindness

    José Saramago1999

    An epidemic of sudden blindness strikes a city, leading to the collapse of social order. A small group struggles to survive in a filthy asylum.

    cold → bleak, still psychological horror

    pace0·prose+1·bleak+1

To recover

cold → playful

3 more ↓

  • Vampires Are Forever

    Lynsay Sands2008

    A woman suspects her business partner is a vampire after he attempts to bite her. He tries to convince her they are fated mates.

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

  • The Mane Event

    Shelly Laurenston2007

    A female cop reunites with a childhood friend who is now a lion-shifter. They navigate a romantic attraction while he pursues her in New York.

    pace+1·prose-2·bleak-2

  • This Girl

    Colleen Hoover2013

    A husband retells the story of his early relationship to his wife. It uses dual timelines to revisit events from the first book in the series.

    cold → earnest

    pace0·prose-2·bleak-2

Faster

3 more ↓

  • The Rising

    Brian Keene2003

    A father travels across an apocalypse where the dead are possessed by malevolent, intelligent demons. The world is ending permanently.

    cold → bleak

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak+1

  • Shattered

    Dean Koontz1973

    A man and his future stepson drive across America while being stalked by the woman's vengeful ex-husband.

    cold → tense

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak-1

  • The Executioner

    Chris Carter2010

    A Los Angeles detective hunts a serial killer who murders victims using their specific phobias. Each crime scene features a blood-scrawled number.

    cold → tense

    pace+2·prose-2·bleak0

Slower

3 more ↓

  • The Conspiracy Against the Human Race

    Thomas Ligotti2010

    A series of philosophical essays arguing that human consciousness is a tragic evolutionary accident. It posits that non-existence is preferable.

    cold → bleak

    pace-1·prose0·bleak+1

  • Among Others

    Jo Walton2011

    A teenage girl at a 1970s boarding school copes with her twin's death through books and subtle magic. It is written as a series of diary entries.

    cold → tender

    pace-1·prose-1·bleak-1

  • Tehanu

    Ursula K. Le Guin1990

    A widow cares for an aging mage who has lost his magic. The story focuses on domestic life and the aftermath of past adventures.

    cold → meditative

    pace-1·prose0·bleak-1

Heavier

3 more ↓

  • A Head Full of Ghosts

    Paul G. Tremblay2015

    A camera crew films a family whose daughter exhibits signs of possession. The story is told through the sister's memory and the footage.

    cold → tense, still psychological horror

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak+1

  • Silent Children

    Ramsey Campbell2000

    A man discovers his father may have been a child killer, leading him into a confrontation with the past and a current threat.

    cold → bleak, still psychological horror

    pace0·prose0·bleak+1

  • Nona

    Stephen King2016

    A hitchhiker and a woman named Nona go on a violent killing spree across Maine. The narrator recounts the events from a jail cell.

    cold → bleak, still psychological horror

    pace+1·prose-1·bleak+1